Online registration for Library programs requires a current library card from Skokie Public Library or a registered card from your home suburban library. If you do not have a card or if you live in Chicago, call 847-673-7774 to sign up by phone.

After the registration deadline, available spaces will be filled on a first come, first served basis. Please call for space availability and registration.

Using archival Library of Congress recordings and footage gathered by John and Alan Lomax in the 1930s and 40s, the film explores the birth of the blues out of the hard time experiences of black farmers and cotton workers in the Mississippi Delta. On-screen subtitles of the bleak lyrics of primitive blues songs attest to the subsistence existence of early blues musicians, and demonstrate the blues as ‘storytelling through music.” Features interviews and performances with Son House, Leadbelly, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Taj Mahal.

Say Amen, Somebody (17 min)This cinema verite classic features three epochal figures who pioneered the Golden Age of Gospel Music: Willie Mae Ford Smith, Thomas A. Dorsey and Sallie Martin. Each played influential roles in creating gospel music as we know it today. Dorsey’s songs are credited with marrying blues music and rhythms with religious and inspirational lyrics; Martin helped him create a national training ground and market for gospel singing; and ‘Mother’ Smith became one of its first and most proficient soloists, mentoring younger singers including Mahalia Jackson.

Presented by Scott Paulin

Contact Number: 847-673-7774

Status: Closed

Please Note

This event requires 24-hour advance cancellation so that others may attend.

If you do not have a Skokie Public Library card or another card with current borrowing privileges, please call the Contact Number listed above and a member of our staff will be happy to sign you up.